Mind games
by 0RamblingRose0
Summary: D9, Jack, and Rose are enlisted to track down a being with strong telepathic powers so solve a murder.
1. Chapter 1

Title: Mind Games  
Rated: PG  
Warnings: darkish themes, language, sexual overtones.  
Summary: D9, Jack, and Rose have to track down a being with strong telepathic powers so solve a murder.  
Notes: This fic was inspired by a dream that involved dr who and the xmen... but I tried my best to weed out the xmen as much as possible. But please forgive any very obvious references to the xmen, I couldn't keep the dream plot without some of the stuff.

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Chapter One - The Profesor

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The TARDIS came to an abrupt stop. The three occupants tumbled unceremoniously to the floor. They slowly gathered their senses and pulled themselves back to their feet. The Doctor dusted off his leather jacket and turned to the other two. 

"Are you alright there Rose?" The blond nodded as she rubbed the side of her head. The Doctor looked over at Jack. "Jack?"

"Does this thing always land this badly?" Jack asked, working a kink out of his shoulder.

"No, not always, usually only when something is wr--"

Without warning the TARDIS lurched again, sending the three back to the floor. The TARDIS fell silent except for a few small knocks from the depths of the ship. The three stayed down on the floor until they felt certain that the ship was not going to throw them down again. Once on their feet again, The Doctor checked to see when and where they were.

"That's odd," he muttered. He looked at his travel mates. "There's nothing there."

"Isn't that impossible?" Rose asked.

"Nothing is impossible," Jack commented.

"As much as I hate to admit it, but Jack is right," The Doctor replied. "Improbable but not all that impossible."

The three jumped in alarm when the entrance to TARDIS opened. A man in a hovering chair, that much resembled an oddly done wheelchair, entered. He was not an old man, but nor was he a young man either. He was dressed in a smart manner and had a bald head.

"Forgive me for not standing," he said. "And I apologize if I caught you unaware. But I need your help."

The Doctor shared a glance with Rose and Jack. "How did you stop my ship?"

The man gave a half smile. "I had to time it perfectly. I knew I would only have a fraction of half a second. It must have confused your ship when I made it stop so suddenly." He raised a bemused eyebrow. "You were not aware that I knew it had a mind?"

"Who are you?" Rose had asked the important question.

"I am a friend," he replied. "You may call me Professor."

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_This is getting a bit ridiculous_, Rose thought to herself. _First we have The Doctor, now we have The Professor. What's next, The Solicitor? It's like a set up for a really bad joke._

"I wish this were a joke, Rose," Professor said, slowly turning his chair to face the three of them.

They sat up straight on the sofa in The Professor's vast library. Jack and The Doctor both looked at Rose's perplexed expression.

"I never said it was," Rose said slowly. "And how do you know my name?"

The Professor gave a half smirk. "I have the uncanny ability hear your every thought." He's gaze centred on The Doctor. "And I do mean every thought, Doctor. Even when they are randomly going through your brain during a discussion."

The Doctor's face turned a light flush of red. "So why did you bring us here, Professor? Why not solve your problem on your own if you can read minds? Why throw us about my ship?"

The Professor closed his eyes as if in deep concentration. "I once again apologize for any damage done to your person, Doctor, but it was imperative that I get _you_. You see, like me, you possess a certain… gift. True, your gift of intuition is very different from mine, but it is nonetheless useful to help me in my case. An outsider's point of view, one could say."

"What do you need help doing, Professor?" Jack asked with a somewhat suspicious look on his face.

"I have had several of the staff and students here go missing lately," The Professor said. "For some reason I cannot get through to them. It all started when I found my son dead. Then one by one, people began to disappear. Those closer to him disappeared first and then those he wished to be close to. I can't explain it, unless someone is trying to lure me away to a point of vulnerability. I want your help finding who it is and doing away with them."

The Doctor grinned slightly. "There has to be some kind of brick on the track. What's the deal with this murderer?"

The Professor's half smirk disappeared. Even his tone was heavily serious. "He has the uncanny ability to manipulate time and existence by merely thinking of it. He likes to find weaknesses and play upon them to the point they drive you mad as he switches you back and forth between reality and what you most desire. And there have been several time in which I found myself too weak to decipher what was real and what wasn't."

"So you enlisted a Time Lord in hopes that he could figure it all out," The Doctor smirked.

The Professor was quiet. "I would be lying if I said 'no'. Can you help me?"

Rose looked up at the Doctor as he stood. "Don't at least want to think about it Doctor before --"

"I've already given my answer," The Doctor said with a bright smile. "Come on, back to the TARDIS."

For the longest of moments, Rose wondered what The Doctor's answer had been. That however was remedied as they were leaving the library.

"Thank you for your help Doctor," The Professor said quietly. "But I warn you to be careful, I never know when he's coming back for someone else."

Once they were safely within the TARDIS again, Rose could not contain her shock. She turned The Doctor toward her.

"Are you _mad_? The man can manipulate time and existence!" she proclaimed.

"I know," The Doctor smiled. "Thought it would be fun. Should be easy after the last stop." He sent a glare to Jack. "Not that the complications were a natural fault."

Jack put his hands on his hips. "You are going to remind me of that constantly aren't you?"

"I will until I get tired of it," The Doctor quipped. "But, come on, we have some lives to save." he looked over at Rose. "Rose? It could be dangerous."

She smiled shyly. "What's life without a little bit of danger?"

"Two out of three in favour," The Doctor said. "You can sit it out if you want Jack."

"And let the two of you have all the fun?" Jack boasted. "I think not."

"Good, we start in the morning," The Doctor said, and disappeared into the back of the ship.


	2. Chapter 2

Title: Mind Games  
Rated: PG  
Warnings: darkish themes, language, sexual overtones.  
Summary: D9, Jack, and Rose have to track down a being with strong telepathic powers so solve a murder.

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Chapter Two - Cold

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_  
_

_I never know when he's coming back for someone else…_

The Doctor rolled the warning over and over in his mind. Roughly, it meant if anything strange started happening that he needed to let his inner red flags clue him in that the suspect was close by. Then again, if something strange were happening in the TARDIS, how would he know? Strange things happened all the time, so how would he know something was different?

There was a loud crash outside of his bedroom door, followed by Rose calling, "Doctor!"

Considering that was actually something fairly common, The Doctor calmly walked out of his bedroom without any worry that something dramatic was going on. Or rather, at least nothing so dramatic that it couldn't be fixed easily. He walked to the front of the ship and Jack was sitting on the floor in the middle of some spare items, holding his mouth. Rose was standing over Jack, trying to get him to put his hands down.

"What happened?" The Doctor asked.

"I was trying to show him about boxing and he didn't dodge in time," Rose said with a half smile. The Doctor raised his eyebrow speculatively. "What? His only useful skill is with guns, he needed a little boxing instruction. It was intended to be a hands on lesson. Just in case he needed to know."

The Doctor looked down at Jack, he nodded in agreement. "Did you break anything?"

"I think maybe she knocked a tooth loose, but other than--"

"Not you, I was talking about these," The Doctor commented. After Jack was standing again The Doctor checked the state of his precious items. "Everything looks to be fine." He looked at Rose, who was clutching her hand in the other. "Is your hand alright?"

Her gaze seemed to linger on him for a long moment. The smallest of smiles appeared at the corner of her lips there was a flicker of empty warmth in her eyes. "Of course Doctor."

The Doctor shook his head to clear it. The small smile and flicker in her eyes was gone. "The two of you need to try and get some sleep before morning comes," The Doctor instructed. "We have to try and track down that murderer tomorrow if we want to get back on schedule." He walked up to the console and lightly drummed on it. "If we actually knew what tomorrow was it would be a big help…"

Rose and Jack retreated to their respective quarters. The Doctor meticulously stacked the boxes of items Jack had knocked over to their original state and returned to his own room. He grabbed a book at random and plopped down on his bed to read. His eyes merely skimmed the pages, but the Doctor was really wondering what sort of mission they were really on.

A telepath that had the ability to alter time and existence could mean they were a person capable of almost anything. In fact, that could also explain the lack of a date and time from TARDIS. If they were in a time and place outside of time and existence… anything would be possible. Not to mention the person was able to get into his head and know every last one of his thoughts, fears, and desires.

That alone would be enough to get The Doctor into a lot of trouble. There had to be some sort of way to block the person out so they would be unable to know exactly what he had in mind -- literally. Some way to know when it was real and when it wasn't…

The Doctor's ears perked as he heard the sound of softly padded footsteps outside his door. A soft knock sounded at his door. He put his book down and walked over to his door. Slowly, he pulled the door open to see Rose's smiling face on the other side. His eyes slowly roamed over her frame and the nearly see through the gown she was wearing. Lucky for them both she was wearing an old cotton robe over it.

"May I come in Doctor?" she asked quietly, looking down at her feet while trying to demurely catch his eyes. Her eyes had the same empty light as they had not too long ago. It was almost as if Rose were under some kind of spell and it was only her body, not her mind in front of him. Before he could get a closer look, she turned her eyes back to her feet. "May I Doctor?"

"Of course," The Doctor smiled and stepped aside to let her have entrance to his room. He peeked his head out the door and frowned slightly when he heard Jack muttering something down the corridor. He closed the door and turned toward Rose. "So what brings --"

Rose shoved him against the door and sealed her firm lips against his. Her fingers eagerly pushed his jacket open more so that she could run her fingers over the front of his jumper. The tip of her tongue teased his lips as she raggedly exhaled and her hands found their way under his jumper. Her hands were surprisingly cold against his skin.

Come to think of it, so were her lips. Everything about her seemed too cold. The Doctor closed his eyes and pushed her away. "No," he stated firmly. "You're not real." He opened his eyes and Rose was gone. He looked around his room as if expecting Rose to pop out from behind a book and say 'surprise'.

He hurried out of his room and down the corridor to her room. He eased the door open. Rose was huddled up beneath her blankets, only her head and the pillow she was curled around peeking above the edges. A gentle smile was playing on her lips as she slept. A warm, very Rose, smile. Not the fake smile he had seen in his room moments ago.

The Doctor glanced over his shoulder to make sure Jack had not migrated out into the corridor. Once he was assured of Jack's absence, The Doctor reached out and lightly touched Rose's lips and cheek. They were both very warm and soft, a complete contrast to the hard cold lips he had felt.

Rose inhaled sharply in her sleep and raggedly exhaled, "Doctor…" A tiny smile tugged at her lips and she seemed to float back into deep slumber.

The Doctor raised an eyebrow. Warmth had also been in her voice, whereas moments ago her voice had sounded almost hallow and fake. The Doctor smiled slightly as he realized that he knew the difference between the real and the false. And next time, he would be ready.

Though, as he walked away from Rose's bed, he couldn't help but wonder what sort of dream she was having that had her whisper "Doctor" with such a beautifully breathless tone.

888

Rose sat up sharply in her bed as her door closed. She looked around her room quickly to assure that no one was there to hurt her. "Doctor?" she asked quietly. As far as she knew, The Doctor was the only one that would be up at this hour. She knew he would habitually check in on her some nights. Perhaps this was one of the nights he felt more drawn to keeping a watch on her.

Given the circumstances, it would have been understandable.

"Hello Rose."

Rose startled slightly, she grasped her blankets to keep them from falling away from her chest. She managed a smile when The Doctor came from the shadows of her room. His hands were buried deep in his pockets and he was wearing nothing more than his trousers and an old undershirt.

"Hello, Doctor, making our nightly rounds are we?"

He only gave a slight smile and walked over to sit on the edge of her bed. "I was just making sure you were alright." He reached up and put his hand on the one she had keeping her blanket to her chest. She shivered slightly at the coolness of his hand.

Rose opened her mouth to speak but The Doctor had swooped in and lightly pressed his lips to hers. She felt her body shiver again at he feel of his cold lips. Why had she always thought he would be warmer? True she had only been in his embrace for a short moments before, but she seemed to remember him being warmer…

Not to mention he just _felt_ fake.

She moved to put her hand on his chest but her hand continued to push forward. She opened her eyes and the Doctor was nowhere in sight. "Doctor?" she called quietly. "Doctor?"

She jumped at the sound of Jack crying out in terror. "Jack!" She leapt from her bed and quickly snatched up her old bathrobe to cover her naked frame. She flung her door open as soon as she had it tied shut. The Doctor was running down the corridor toward her, fully dressed and groomed. For a moment she looked at him in surprise then Jack's cry of terror brought her attention back to what was at hand.

Just as her and The Doctor reached Jack's door, it slammed shut in their faces. She rattled the handle but it seemed to be locked. The Doctor began banging on the door loudly calling Jack's name.

Soon, the cries died away and the door popped open at its own accord. Rose and The Doctor tumbled into Jack's room. She instinctively grasped The Doctor's arm and gasped in shock as she looked at the dishevelled sheets on Jack's bed. Judging by the traces of blood on them, he had put up a bit of a fight.

Rose looked up at The Doctor. His eyes were stonily locked on the blood stained sheets, his jaw was set with stubbornness. "Don't worry Rose, we'll get him back." He looked down at her sharply, a softness seemed to cross his eyes then flitter away. "As soon as I can, I'll be finding out where this person can be found and we will get Jack back."


	3. Chapter 3

Title: Mind Games  
Rated: PG  
Warnings: darkish themes, language, sexual overtones.  
Summary: D9, Jack, and Rose have to track down a being with strong telepathic powers to solve a murder.

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Chapter Three - The Nightmare Begins

* * *

Last she remembered, The Doctor had not made the TARDIS travel. But, they had stepped out the door within an hour of Jack's disappearance and found themselves standing in the middle of a vast city. Most of the buildings were rather dilapidated except for one that towered over them all. The tall building gleamed like a silver tower above the failing skeletons of the older buildings.

"It's almost like a nightmare, Doctor," Rose said quietly. "How did we get here?"

"He can control time and existence remember?" The Doctor reminded. Rose jumped slightly when The Doctor took her hand. "Stay close. If I feel cold, don't believe a word I say." All she could do was nod mutely as The Doctor led her through the abandoned streets. "He wants us to find him. It's my bet he's in that building." The Doctor looked up at the topmost floors of the building where every light glowed in the windows. "And I'll take further bets that Jack is somewhere in those top two floors."

A faint wind blew, rustling the exposed interior of the old buildings. Rose huddled herself closer to The Doctor. She could have sworn she had seen people with the strangest of markings and appearances. They had looked like creatures she had dreams of long before she had ever met The Doctor. She kept her hand clutched to the warmth of The Doctor's hand as he purposely strode through the empty streets. He looked neither left nor right, only straight ahead.

Finally, they were able to see the entrance into the towering building. The sign outside the building was made of several stone letters that spelled out two words: BAD WOLF. Rose looked at the building where the words "Bad Wolf Corporation" were perched over the doors in gleaming silver letters.

"I don't like this place Doctor," Rose commented.

"We need to get Jack back though Rose," The Doctor said solemnly. He looked down at her and smiled smugly. "Or I could go in and you could just stay out here?"

Rose looked around and saw some of the menacing figures beginning to creep out of their hiding places. She looked back up at The Doctor quickly. "I think I'll go with you to find Jack." She wasted no time and ran to the entrance, pushing the doors open. Her heart fell as she looked around what she supposed to be the lobby of the building. The Doctor jogged up behind her.

"No lift," The Doctor pointed out. "No stairs. No way out other than the way we came in."

"This can't be right," Rose said, walking into the dust covered lobby. Old cobwebs dangled from archways in the middle of blank wall. She turned as she heard the entrance doors close. "Doctor!" she pointed at the doors, which no longer existed.

The Doctor turned to look at where the door once was. "Correction, now we have _no_ way out." He sighed heavily and explored the span of the lobby. Finally he returned to a tattered and dusty chair. "You know what this means, right Rose?"

Rose turned to look at the Doctor as he plopped down in the plush chair, sending dust and God knows what else flying into the air. "What does it mean Doctor?" she asked shakily.

"It means we make ourselves comfortable and wait for him to give us a way up or a way out," he Doctor propped an ankle on his knee and bobbed his foot playfully. "I'm pretty sure he's just testing us. Just remember to stay close. Last thing we probably want to do is get separated."

Rose scurried over and took a seat next to The Doctor, on the floor. She looped an arm around the leg that was propping the other one up. Though she knew it would most likely drive her mad, Rose set herself on the mindset of not once letting go of The Doctor while in the building.

888

They both jerked themselves awake at the sound of lift echoing through the hallow building. Rose wiped her mouth from where she had been drooling in her sleep. The Doctor haphazardly brushed at the wet spot her drooling had formed on the side of his trouser leg. She looked up at him and smiled apologetically.

Out of nowhere, as if it were a long lost relative of the TARDIS, a set of silver doors slowly appeared in the middle of one of the cobweb laced arches. The Doctor and Rose pulled themselves to their feet as the doors finished materializing and the clanking of the lift stopped. The doors gave a loud, eerie _thump_ and began to slowly open.

A familiar form was standing in the lift. He had a cut over his eye, mouth bleeding, several articles of his clothing torn and covered with evidence of a fight. But, he looked ready to faint out.

"Jack!" Rose called, rushing to catch Jack before he fell. The Doctor reached him the same time she had and helped her hold him up. "Let's hurry and get back to the TARDIS, Doctor."

Before they could turn and start walking out of the lift with Jack, the doors snapped shut. The Doctor studied Jack's slacked face. The young man's skin was moderately cool, but that was to be expected in such circumstances wasn't it? Especially when there was no telling what he had been put through to get him in such a weakened state.

Rose adjusted herself uncomfortably until Jack was perched on her back, primed for being dragged about. "There's twenty-nine floors, Doctor. Perhaps we should start at the top most floor? That would be the obvious location wouldn't it?" She shifted her weight again, trying to keep Jack in a good position on her back.

The Doctor muttered to himself under his breath, "Yes, yes… That would be the most likely choice…" The Doctor smiled with pride. "But! He would be expecting us to know that was the most likely place would be… So! That means…" The Doctor dropped his tone and looked at Rose in an almost psychotic manner. "He is, of course, on the twenty-eighth floor. You are bloody fantastic Rose." A thoughtful look crossed his features. "Unless of course he thought that we would think we would think he was on the twenty-ninth floor and we would think to look on the twenty-eighth floor…"

"Doctor, you're not making any sense, as usual," Rose commented.

"I'm making perfect sense, Rose," The Doctor grinned. "It's all one big mind game and I am _loving it_!" The Doctor was quiet for a moment then jabbed the button for the twenty-eighth floor. "Just remember, we need to stay together… All three of us. We'll do better together instead of apart."

The lift moved slowly up the shaft. Occasionally, The Doctor would see Rose look up at him expectantly, he would give her an encouraging smile.

_Third floor_? It had taken nearly five minutes just to get to the third floor from the first. The Doctor couldn't help but know that this was indeed going to be a very taxing lift ride.

"Doctor," Rose said in a hushed voice. "Were you anywhere near my room before Jack started crying out for help?"

"I had stopped in a few minutes before to see if you were sleeping," The Doctor replied, burying his hands in his pockets. "You were, so I went back to my room to read. Did you get up and go to mine at any time?"

"No, why? Did you see me in your room? He made you see me in there didn't he? Just like he made me see you," Rose said with a panicked tone. "What did you see?"

The Doctor looked down at Rose with a half smile. "Nothing really. You?"

Rose looked straight ahead and tried to adjust Jack again. "The same. Nothing to out of sorts." She glanced at The Doctor slightly then went back to looking at the lift doors.

The Doctor followed Rose's lead and simply looked straight ahead, only with an annoying smirk on his lips. "Liar."

"Takes one to know one," Rose retorted. She was quiet a long moment -- _eighth floor_ -- then sighed heavily as if annoyed. "Come on, tell me what you saw Doctor? I know it involved me in some form otherwise you wouldn't have asked if I had been in your room."

The Doctor tried to choose his words carefully, then figured it would be best to turn her words around on her. "I guess I could say the same to you Rose. So, more accurately, what did _you_ see _me_ doing?" He looked over at Rose. Her gaze was fixed firmly on the lift doors, though her cheeks were gently flushed.

Rose bit her bottom lip. "It wasn't just you, you know. Jack was there too." She looked up at him and away again. It was a small habit she had when she was lying, looking at him then looking away. "The two of you were trying to get me to go on some sort of adventure."

The Doctor leaned back against the back of the lift and gave a slight laugh. Rose lowered Jack to the floor and turned to face The Doctor.

"What's so funny Doctor? You don't believe me?"

"Let us pretend for a moment I do," The Doctor teased. "Was it you or me in the middle? Or was it me or Jack acting as the voyeur?"

Rose's jaw dropped in shock. "Doctor! What makes you think that I was ---"

"You're a fully human girl with a ravenous sexual appetite," The Doctor interrupted. "And if there's anything I know it's what human girls think when given the chance to let their minds wander to the forbidden. I've seen it too many times."

"Well," Rose huffed. "In that case, what was I doing in your room?"

"Just being yourself," The Doctor replied smartly.

"Bullocks," Rose coughed. "Like you knowing how human girls' mind work, I know how a man's mind work."

"But I'm the first alien you've met so how can you say that?"

"Well, you're half human. So I half way know what you're thinking," Rose insisted.

"Who says I'm half?"

Rose opened her mouth to say something and then stopped with a confused expression on her face. She rubbed her temples as if she were getting a bad headache. "A voice," she murmured. "It knows you and what you are." She squeezed her eyes shut tightly. "Doctor… Make him stop."

The Doctor grasped Rose' shoulders. "Concentrate on something else Rose… Push him out of your mind. Tell him he's lying about whatever he's making you see."

Rose released a heavy exhale and looked up at The Doctor. "It seemed so real," she whispered. "But cold… so cold." Rose looked up at him, there was an intense emptiness in her eyes. The Doctor shook his head to clear it then reopened his eyes.

Rose was still standing beside him, supporting Jack against her shoulders. She sighed heavily and looked up at his stunned expression.

"What?" she asked, looking at him oddly. "Are you okay Doctor?"

The Doctor looked at the floor counter. It read that they were on the twenty-fifth floor. The lift seemed to be moving much faster than it had previously been moving. "What was the last thing I said to you?"

"That we needed to stay together… Then you looked off with that daft expression of contentment you always get when on a dangerous mission."

The lift came to a smooth stop and the doors slid open. Rose dragged Jack from the lift. The Doctor moved to follow but something seemed to be holding him in place. Rose turned sharply, panic crossed her features.

"Doctor!"

"Stay here with Jack, Rose! If you loose him we may not find him again," the doctor called as the lift doors slammed shut. As soon as they were firmly shut, The Doctor was able to move. The suddenness of the ability made him fall forward against the cold metal doors.

It could have only meant one thing… The man they were after was, in fact, on the twenty-ninth floor. He just hoped Rose would not get the bright idea to follow him upwards.


	4. Chapter 4

Title: Mind Games  
Rated: PG  
Warnings: darkish themes, language, sexual overtones.  
Summary: D9, Jack, and Rose have to track down a being with strong telepathic powers to solve a murder.

* * *

Chapter Four - Dream Rooms

* * *

"Rose?" 

The voice was very weak, but Rose stopped instantly and slid Jack down to the floor so that she could look at him straight faced. "Jack?" She cupped his face in her hands. "Are you alright Jack?"

Jack groaned in pain as he tried to sit up, then he seemed to decide it would be best to retain his position of lying on the floor. "The Doctor… He beat the crap out of me. Blacked out…"

"No, he didn't Jack. It was all fake," Rose informed. "I was standing outside of your room with The Doctor while you were being taken. We're going to try and get you some help…" Rose lifted her head and looked at all the closed doors down the corridor. In spite of lights she had glowing from the windows outside of the building, there were no sort of warm lights burning from beneath the doors.

She looked back toward the direction of the lift. The doors had faded away into nothing more than a simple piece of blank wall surrounded by a decorative arch. Carefully, she helped Jack get to his own feet. He panted painfully and held his ribs with the hand he didn't have around her shoulders. However he managed a slight laugh.

"You know, I never figured I would get into the whole BDSM thing until earlier," Jack commented light heartedly. "But, if how I'm feeling now is any indication, it would have to be a once in a while type thing."

Rose looked up at Jack and managed an amused smile. "You were having a sex dream about the Doctor?" she snorted.

"You were there too," Jack inserted, managing a slight grin. "Wouldn't mind that really happening once I recover from this…"

"Typical," Rose scoffed. She gasped as a faint light appeared beneath one of the doors close to the end of the corridor. "Do you know what's in any of these rooms?"

"Not a clue, but I think they cater to whatever you're thinking at a given moment, like the TARDIS." Jack stopped to catch a few short breaths. "But I'm not sure."

"Well, I really want to get you some medical help," Rose stated firmly.

"That's not… Oh God, ribs hurt… badly…" Jack's limbs buckled and Rose was barely able to save him from colliding face-first with the floor.

Rose adjusted Jack onto her back again and struggled toward the light at the end of the corridor with all the energy she could muster. By time she reached the door, her back was incredibly sore. She released a ragged sigh as she read the small, proudly gleaming, gold plate on the door.

_Medical Treatments_.

She hunched herself over so that she could reach the knob without loosing Jack. As soon as she touched the knob the door swung open. She rushed as fast as she could into the room. It was equipped with several small cots with blankets and pillows. There were doctors and nurses scurrying around, tending to other patients.

"Thank God."

As if drawn by her voice, the doctors and nurses rushed over to Rose and relieved her of Jack's weight.

"Let us take him to the back…" one of them said. "You wait here…"

"No!" Rose called out, remembering what The Doctor had said about possibility never being able to find Jack again. "I want to stay with him…"

Jack seemed to come around for a moment. He gave her a faint smile. "Go help The Doctor Rose. I'll be fine, I promise." Rose watched as they led him away behind a curtain. "_Go_," he repeated.

She rushed forward to at least see what awaited Jack on the other side of the curtain. When she snatched the curtain back, all that was there was a dusty old military cot with moth-eaten blankets on it. Rose looked around the room. The once bustling room was void of any life, other than her own. There wasn't even a light build lit up, just the vague glow of the moon from outside the window.

"Where'd you take Jack!" she screamed. She turned around and around, hoping that maybe the scenery would reappear. When it became obvious that she would not be getting Jack back, Rose picked up the old cot and threw it across the room, hoping to get the attention of the man playing the trick on her mind. "What did you do with Jack you coward!"

Rose raced from the old room, turning to look at the door as she closed it. There was still a gold plate that said "medical treatments", only it was severely tarnished and looked like it suffered from extreme neglect. She rested her forehead against the door and fought the urge to cry. The one thing The Doctor had told her not to do, she had done.

What had she been expecting? That the madman would actually allow her to keep her friends close by? Had she really been that sort of foolish? She felt helpless without Jack or The Doctor there to make sure she didn't do anything stupid. Then again, Jack had told her to go and find The Doctor.

But how would she ever be able to find him in such a confusing place?

"Rose," a familiar voice called out.

Rose felt her blood drain to her feet. "Doctor?" She ran toward the direction of the voice. Had the lift brought him to the twenty-eighth floor while she was in the medical room with Jack? She caught sight of his tall frame at the other end of the corridor and raced that way as he disappeared into one of the rooms. When she reached the end, he was nowhere in sight. "Doctor?

She jumped and turned as she heard a loud voice boom from one of the close rooms.

"I can control you," the voice intoned. "Your thoughts are mine to make into reality."

Her breath caught in her throat as she edged toward a room that now had a blue light glowing from beneath the door. She slowly reached out and touched the doorknob. The door swung open, Rose gasped in shock.

The Professor was floating in the middle of the room, surrounded by an intense blue light. She slowly walked around him. His eyes appeared to be rolling back in his head as small threads of white seemed to be sinking into his flesh.

"I can control you," The Professor repeated. "Your thoughts are mine to make into reality."

Rose felt herself grind her teeth. "Liar!" she shouted. "Give me Jack back, give me my Doctor! Let us go home to the TARDIS!" She picked up a rickety old folding chair that lie in the corner and raised it up to attack the floating Professor. Mid-swing the chair froze in place and yanked roughly from her hands. She looked at The Professor; the whites of his eyes had turned black.

"I can control you," he repeated again. The chair flew over her head with a loud _whoosh_ and crashed through the window. "Your thoughts are mine to make into reality."

Rose looked around and realized she had thrown herself to the floor to avoid being hit by the flying chair. She slowly drew herself back to her feet. A familiar sound reached her ears, the sound of the lift ticking and knocking out in the corridors.

"We'll se about that," Rose promised just before she raced out into the corridors.

The twin metal doors materialized beneath the arch. With desperation, Rose threw herself into the lift and hit the bottom for the topmost floor. If she couldn't find Jack, she was going to make damned sure she at least found The Doctor.

888

_Meanwhile, on the next floor up…_

The Doctor stepped out of the lift. The moment his foot hit the metal floor, the corridor seemed to roll with thunder. It seemed to get louder as the lift closed behind him, as soon as the doors had disappeared silence surrounded The Doctor. He visually counted the doors in the corridor.

"Thirteen rooms, thirteen chances for me to find where you are hiding," The Doctor proclaimed, listening to his voice reverberate off the metal floor and walls. "And make no doubt, I _will_ find you. Even if I have to open one door at a time to do it."

The Doctor picked a direction to start in and strode purposely down the corridor. His footsteps echoed like a song foretelling danger to whatever lied behind the doors. He reached out to grasp the first doorknob and was surprised by the fact he had barely touched it, and it sprung open for him. When he first stepped onto the thick carpeting of the old dusty room, he wondered what sort of odd things could come to pass in a room inhabited by nothing but dust, moths, and a few old rickety school desks.

The Doctor closed his eyes and inhaled slowly. The sound of a ringing bell filled his ears. He opened his eyes and the room was gleaming and clean with the sun pouring in through the windows. Older teenagers were sitting in seemingly brand new desks in proper school uniforms. And if he wasn't mistaken, two of the students were a few years' younger versions of his two travel companions.

The slightly younger Rose was seated up at the front, right in front of his lecture desk, slouched down in her seat. Her uniform jacket looked about three sizes too big for her, as if it were a hand-me-down from her mother. Her hair looked as if it had been teleported from an early Madonna video and hadn't been tended for days. Overly dramatic eyeliner surrounded her eyes, giving her an extra hint of self-neglect. She rolled the eraser of a pencil over her bottom lip in a bored fashion.

One of the other girls leaned over Rose's shoulder and whispered something, which results in Rose simply whipping her hand back and hitting the girl in the nose.

In the far back corner, engrossed in conversation over some sort of robotic trinket with a male and female classmate, was Jack. Jack seemed to be paying no mind to the fact The Doctor even existed in front of him.

"So're ya going to start the lesson or not Doctor?" Rose asked snidely. "I got a smoking appointment in the girl's lavatory in about ten minutes." She gave a smug little smile, one that spoke volumes of disrespect.

The Doctor figured he had better make the best of the scenario before him. He picked up the book on his lecture desk. "Today we will talk about…" He looked at the book and felt himself flush slightly. "A subject which I think most of you are rather fond of… The human body."

Jack looked up from his little robotic trinket. "Hey Doctor, the agenda today says you were supposed to be teaching us about the finer arts of sexual gratification. The places that are best to touch and not to touch, that sort of thing. Or, at least, that's what I'm here for." He gave a raunchy type laugh, which was shared by his companions.

"Well, it's all really just trial and error isn't it?" the Doctor asked. The students in the classroom laughed and began to gather their belongings and exit the room. The Doctor turned his back to the emptying desks. "Well, that was easy, test done."

The Doctor turned to follow the example of the imaginary students, but jumped slightly when he did so. Rose was sitting on the edge of his lecture desk, uniform skirt hiked up to a very immodest height, her spread legs adding to the immodesty. "I thought the test would be over…" He narrowed his eyes as he approached the younger Rose. "May I help you?"

She smiled impishly and reached out to grasp the front of his jacket. The Doctor grasped her wrist. "Don't even try it, I know you're not real."

Almost instantly, the brightness of the room scattered like dust and he was in the rundown, one desk room again. The Doctor looked around the room. He had seen that particular classroom before, it seemed like it was a ghost out of his dreams.

Once he walked out of the room, he walked to the one directly across from it. As soon as he was fully inside the room, the door slammed shut and locked several times. He covered his ears as the room was filled with howls and cries like that of several people being tortured and tormented. Several sets of hands seemed to be pulling at him, grabbing him and pulling him toward the centre of the room.

He felt sharp fingernails cut at his skin. He closed his eyes tightly. "YOU ARE NOT REAL!"

Suddenly, everything became silent. He opened his eyes and the room was completely empty, except for a few cobwebs blowing in an invisible breeze. Shaken, but not deterred, the Doctor left the room and went on to the next one. While he was standing in the corridor, he dared the telepath, "Is that the best you got? You really think I would forget why I'm here just because you slut up Rose and throw a few ghosts at me? You're forgetting, I'm not a human being!" he lowered his eyes to his feet and shuffled them slightly. "For the most part anyway…"

The Doctor strode across the corridor and thrust open another door. Just before he was to enter the room, a faint blue glow from beneath one of the other doors made him pause. Instead of waling into the room, he walked down to the one with the blue glow under the door. He could hear an inaudible murmuring from inside of it.

He opened the door and before him was The Professor. The Doctor studied the floating form for a long moment, and then became aware of the sound of the clattering lift. Before he had time to pay attention to what The Professor was saying, a familiar voice called out…

"Doctor! Where are you?"

He raced from the blue room just as Rose was about to enter the room full of the angry spirits. He ran and grabbed her arm, causing her to turn and scream. "I wouldn't go in there if I were you. All sort of nastiness in there, wouldn't want to catch something." He pulled her into the safety of the corridor.

Rose threw her arms around his neck. "It's really you. I thought I had lost you." She pulled back before he had the chance to return the embrace. "They took Jack again. I tried to go with him but he told me to come find you, Doctor."

The Doctor used Rose's moment of panicked breathing to pull her close and hug her tightly to him. It was a very real Rose this time. A soft Rose that was warm and oddly enough, smelt faintly of daisies.

"You wouldn't believe what all I had to put up with…" The Doctor said quietly. "You and Jack in Secondary school."

Rose pulled back and grimaced in disgust. "Please tell me I didn't have the Madonna hair… That was such an embarrassing stage in my life and I was such a little tit."

The Doctor managed an excited smile that brought Rose's smile back to her face. He shook his hands on either side of his head. "Don't have to tell me… saw it myself." He rested his hands on her narrow shoulders and gave her a serious expression. "Did you make a habit of flirting with your teachers?"

Rose looked away slightly with just her eyes and bit her bottom lip. "We have to get Jack back, Doctor," Rose insisted.

"I'll take that as a 'yes'," The Doctor grinned. He took her warm hand firmly in his. "Come with me, I found him just before you showed up. I wanted to hear what he had to say…"

The Doctor yanked Rose along with him as he bound back to the blue room.


End file.
